Month: July 2015

Oil headed for its biggest monthly drop this year on speculation that increased OPEC supplies and threats to demand in China will prolong a global glut. Futures slid as much as 1.5 percent in New York and are down 19 percent in July. U.S. crude stockpiles are almost 100 million barrels above the five-year seasonal average, while exports from southern Iraq rose to a record this month. Producers from BP Plc to Royal Dutch Shell Plc have started a new round of cost cutting as prices decline. Oil’s worst month since December paces a slump across raw materials amid expanding surpluses and concern slower economic growth in China will crimp demand. Commodities also dropped as the dollar gained on signs that the Federal Reserve may increase rates. Sanctions on oil exports from Iran, holder of the world’s fourth-biggest crude reserves, may be lifted following a nuclear accord on July […]

Friday’s markets told July’s story in a microcosm: Commodities extended their worst monthly slump since 2011, Chinese shares dropped and the dollar advanced against emerging-market peers as the Federal Reserve moved closer to raising interest rates. Crude oil led the Bloomberg Commodity Index down 0.4 percent by 10:25 a.m. in London, extending the gauge’s decline in July to 10 percent. The dollar headed for the biggest monthly gain since January while a gauge of emerging-market currencies dropped to a record low. Italian bonds headed for their best month since 2013 and Russia’s ruble weakened before a monetary policy decision. The dollar’s ascendance amid rising bets on a U.S. rate increase in September has spread across financial markets, hurting commodities already in retreat on supply gluts and slowing growth in China. Emerging markets have been a chief casualty, while stocks in the U.S. and Europe are poised for their biggest […]

A customer holds a nozzle to fill up his tank in a gasoline station in Nice December 5, 2014. Oil prices fell on Friday as concern over global oversupply intensified after the head of oil producers’ cartel OPEC indicated there would be no cuts in production despite a huge global oversupply. Benchmark North Sea Brent crude LCOc1 headed for its fifth consecutive weekly fall after comments on Thursday in Moscow by Abdullah al-Badri, secretary-general of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Badri said rising demand would prevent a further fall in oil prices and suggested cuts in OPEC output would not have much impact on the market. Brent LCOc1 was down 50 cents at $52.81 a barrel by 0825 GMT after settling 7 cents lower in the previous session. U.S. light crude CLc1 was 60 cents lower at $47.92 a barrel. OPEC members produced around 31.25 million barrels […]

A customer prepares to fill up his tank in a gasoline station in Nice December 5, 2014. Oil prices extended gains in Asian trade on Thursday, after a larger than expected draw in U.S. crude and gasoline stocks strengthened the outlook for oil demand. But gains were capped by a stronger dollar and despite the drop in oil stocks some commentators warn of a global supply glut, with OPEC members producing 3 million barrels per day more than demand in the second quarter. U.S. crude stockpiles fell by 4.2 million barrels in the week to July 24, more than twenty times analysts’ expectations of a decrease of 184,000 barrels, Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed. Gasoline stocks dropped by 363,000 barrels against analysts’ forecasts of a 512,000-barrel gain with U.S. gasoline demand up 6.2 percent from a year ago. The large draw down in stocks could be short-lived, said […]

The OPEC logo is seen at OPEC’s headquarters during a meeting of OPEC oil ministers in Vienna, Austria, June 5, 2015. OPEC expects increasing oil demand to prevent a further fall in prices and sees a more balanced market in 2016, its secretary-general said on Thursday, the latest sign the group is sticking to its policy of defending market share. Oil LCOc1 has dropped about 15 percent this month and halved in value in the past year but neither OPEC nor Russia, the world’s top producer, have cut output to support prices, hoping cheaper oil will hit U.S. shale and other rival sources. "I would not expect they (prices) are going to fall because demand is growing," OPEC Secretary-General Abdullah al-Badri told reporters in Moscow. OPEC pumps around 40 percent of global oil production. "The current situation is a test for all producers and investors. While the prices … […]

The world’s top crude-oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, is planning to pull back from record-high levels of production at the end of the summer when domestic energy demand subsides, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The reduction could begin as soon as September and would amount to about 200,000 to 300,000 barrels a day, bringing production to about 10.3 million barrels a day, the people said. Saudi Arabia told the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries that it produced 10.56 million barrels a day in June, a record high. “It is purely based on the [domestic] demand situation,” one of the people said, adding that “production is likely to hover around” 10 million barrels until the end of the year. Saudi Arabia—one of a handful of countries that generates electricity by burning crude oil—generally reduces production in the fall, when demand for the heavily subsidized energy to power […]

Norwegian energy company DNO says it’s still working as normal in northern Iraq despite the bombing of a pipeline running north to a Turkish port. File Photo by UPI/Mohammed al Jumaily OSLO, Norway, July 30 (UPI) — Norwegian energy company DNO International said Thursday its oil operations in the north of Iraq were isolated from violence raging across the border in Turkey. The company said operations at its Tawke oil field in the Kurdish north of Iraq "continued uninterrupted during this week’s shut down of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline in Turkey, given the flexibility to redirect volumes from exports to local sales." Ankara confirmed Wednesday that a section of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline, running from northern Iraq to Turkish ports, was bombed in southern Sirnak province. The pipeline has a maximum capacity of around 400,000 barrels of oil per day and the bombing comes one day after an attack on […]

Iran’s quest to rejuvenate its energy industry after decades of sanctions is attracting renewable energy developers eager to plant turbines on windy ridges across the country. Since 2012 the government Continue Reading

Building a pipeline from Iran may help Pakistani energy issues, but it won’t be a cure-all for chronic woes, analyst says. UPI/Hamid Forotan/ISNA BATH, England, July 30 (UPI) — Completing a natural gas pipeline from Iran won’t be the "silver bullet" expected by the government in Islamabad, analysis finds. Iran, the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, plus Germany, finalized a deal July 14 that restricts Tehran’s nuclear ambitions in exchange for relief from sanctions targeting its energy sector. For Iran, it may open the spigot on natural gas reserves , which could help address chronic energy shortages in neighboring Pakistan. Oliver Coleman, deputy head of Asia programs at analytical firm Verisk Maplecroft, said in a briefing that while both sides of the pipeline have lauded its benefits , it won’t address the long-term issue completely. "A steady supply of gas from Iran would not be a […]

OAO Rosneft and Exxon Mobil Corp. bid for licenses in Mozambique, forging ahead with a partnership strategy even as U.S.-Russia relations remain tense. Russia’s largest oil producer and Exxon submitted joint bids in Mozambique’s fifth licensing round to explore the Angoche Basin and Zambezi Delta, according to a statement on Rosneft’s website confirmed by Exxon. “Partnerships with global industry leaders, such as Exxon Mobil, allow the company to minimize the risks in the implementation of frontier exploration projects,” Rosneft said. If the bids succeed, Exxon would operate the project, according to Rosneft. The Russian company and Irving, Texas-based Exxon Mobil already produce oil together off the coast of Russia’s Sakhalin Island. They also have explored Russia’s arctic seas, an area now subject to U.S. and European Union sanctions on offshore technologies prompted by Russia’s role in Ukraine. Working together elsewhere in the world may be a way for the […]

Big black plastic bags containing radiated soil, leaves and debris from the decontamination operation are dumped at a seaside, devastated by the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Tomioka town, Fukushima prefecture, near Tokyo Electric Power Co’s (TEPCO)… A Japanese citizens’ panel ruled on Friday that three former Tokyo Electric Power executives should be indicted over their handling of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, Kyodo news agency said. Tokyo prosecutors in January rejected the rarely used panel’s judgment that the three should be indicted, citing insufficient evidence. But the 11 unidentified citizens on the panel forced the indictment after a second vote, which holds sway over the prosecutors’ decision. (Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori; Editing by Nick Macfie )

In China, rice is often at the centre of its national cuisine and its dinner tables. Yet the Chinese government has recently set its eyes on a new staple: the potato. A starchy building block for many European meals, the potato crop could offer a solution to food security issues in China, where one-fifth of the world’s population lives. Beijing was recently the host of a World Potato Congress, which gathered experts to discuss the future of potato farming and sales in China. Government officials say that the quality of the potato crop in China is high, yielding many healthy varieties. The potato is also a low-maintenance crop, requiring less land and water than rice. Yet local consumers might not be willing to accept a new presence on their plates. For many Chinese, the potato is only a culinary accessory, not the main star. "We will have it like […]

More than a year after the oil-price slump began, traders are desperate to determine whether U.S. crude-oil production has started to decline in response to low prices. Mixed and delayed data from the federal government have added to the uncertainty. Market watchers are hoping the next monthly government report, which will offer the first data for May, will help clear up some of the confusion. Here are five things to watch when the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the data-gathering arm of the Energy Department, releases its Petroleum Supply Monthly, expected at 2 p.m. EDT on Friday.

Just because TransCanada continually states that the Keystone XL pipeline will be the safest pipeline ever built, doesn’t mean it is true. The company’s pipeline construction record is facing intense scrutiny in America’s heartland, where many see no justifiable rationale to risk their water and agricultural lands for a tar sands export pipeline . New documents submitted as evidence in the Keystone XL permitting process in South Dakota — including one published here on DeSmog for the first time publicly — paint a troubling picture of the company’s shoddy construction mishaps. This document, produced by TransCanada and signed by two company executives, details the results of its investigation into the “root cause” of the corrosion problems discovered on the Keystone pipeline. TransCanada Corporation is continuing its push to build the northern route of the Keystone XL pipeline. On July 27, the company appeared at a hearing in Pierre, South […]

The Bakken-shale-focused oil-and-gas producer uttered the “F” word in its 2016 outlook: Fifty. That is the oil price underpinning its cash-flow and production targets for next year. It is slightly above where the price is now but fully one-fifth below the consensus forecast. Whiting’s shares plunged 6% on Thursday. The bigger story from Whiting’s uncharacteristic display of hunkering down is its bearish implication for oil prices. First, consider that based on $50 oil, Whiting plans to lay out $1 billion on capital expenditure in 2016, equal to projected cash flow. That would be a 53% cut in investment versus guidance for this year, leading to just an expected 10% drop in output. That reflects productivity gains with Whiting reporting output gains of 40% to 50% in some recently completed wells. Second, Whiting also said Thursday that its budget is “flexible.” There is a certain irony in this: The company […]

CALGARY, Alberta— Canadian Oil Sands Ltd. COSWF 0.90 % on Thursday reported a net loss in the second quarter, citing lower prices for its crude and the effect of a two percentage point corporate tax hike in the Western Canadian province where it operates. The largest owner of the Syncrude oil sands project in northern Alberta lost 128 million Canadian dollars ($98.4 million), or 26 Canadian cents a share, in the three months to June 30, compared with a net profit of C$176 million, or 36 Canadian cents a share, in the year-earlier period. It said the loss mainly came from a C$120 million deferred tax expense reflecting an increase in Alberta’s corporate tax rate to 12% from 10% previously. The company also suffered from a global crude oil price drop, which has affected many so-called unconventional producers of oil-sands crude and shale oil. Citing expenses in excess of […]

WASHINGTON—Final Environmental Protection Agency regulations to cut emissions from U.S. power plants are expected to maintain ambitious emission-reduction targets included in a draft proposal released last year but give companies more time to meet them, according to people familiar with the rule. In another change likely to be welcomed by the electricity industry, the plan is expected to encourage nuclear power generation. The EPA rule, the cornerstone of President Barack Obama ’s climate agenda, will put the first-ever federal limits on carbon emissions from power plants, including those now in operation and those not yet built, forcing operators to move toward cleaner-burning fuels. It is expected to be released as soon as Monday. Republicans and some Democrats on Capitol Hill, along with the coal industry and governors whose states rely on coal for much of their electricity, strongly oppose the rules and are likely to challenge them on Capitol […]

graph of U.S. crude oil production, as explained in the article text Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Petroleum Supply Monthly , Weekly Petroleum Status Report , Drilling Productivity Report , Short-Term Energy Outlook EIA publishes several reports covering current crude oil and natural gas production conditions and how recent trends may affect the near-term outlook for the oil and gas industry. Each EIA product is distinct in its purpose, methodology, timeframe, and regional coverage. Some reports are considered estimates of actual production volumes, while others focus on future production. The Petroleum Supply Monthly (PSM) reports estimates of crude oil and petroleum products production, imports and exports, movements, and inventories on a national and regional level, lagged by two months. PSM estimates of crude oil production rely on several sources, including administrative data from state and federal agencies, the EIA-182 survey of crude oil purchase volumes, and administrative data from […]

Photo A Ford Motor worker at the company’s Chicago assembly plant. Many automakers reported higher sales in their latest earnings reports. Credit M. Spencer Green/Associated Press In a common pattern of the last few years, the American economy, after a dismal start to 2015, regained its footing in the spring and looked set to continue a modest advance for the rest of the year. But the lackluster data last quarter and a slight downward revision of the estimated growth rate over the last three years underscored the challenges that still lie ahead for an economy that doesn’t seem to be able to move ahead at more than a slow jog. The rebound in April, May and June was largely expected, but the 2.3 percent annualized rate, adjusted for inflation, the Commerce Department reported on Thursday in its initial estimate was a bit below what economists on Wall Street predicted […]

The Obama administration’s final plan to cut power-plant emissions will be tougher than was proposed last year, a top White House official said, as a document emerged that showed the government will give states two additional years to comply. White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said the final rule to fight climate change will be released soon, and will have new provisions to boost solar, wind and other renewable energy. President Barack Obama would veto any bill aimed at stopping the plan that would cut carbon emissions, he said. “There really is no overstating how big this year is for climate change,” McDonough said Wednesday at a Washington forum on the issue hosted by the New Republic. “We will finalize a stronger rule.” McDonough, who didn’t answer questions, spoke a day after the Environmental Protection Agency posted a slide on its website showing milestones to implement the standard. […]

After years of languishing in a shale-induced coma, the U.S. natural gas market is waking up. Seasonal price swings will intensify as the country begins shipping liquefied natural gas cargoes to Asia and Europe later this year, said Bank of America Corp., RBC Capital Markets LLC and Wood Mackenzie Ltd. While that’s good news for traders yearning for volatility, it could be bad news for consumers. Exports will help prices rebound from the slump caused by the U.S. pumping record amounts from shale formations. Growing domestic winter demand is already causing spikes and trading volumes in futures markets have rebounded to the highest level in three years. Average retail gas prices also will rise with LNG exports, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. “Connecting U.S. natural gas prices into the global market could result in wider spreads at home,” said Francisco Blanch, the head of commodities research at Bank […]

An oil field is seen at sunrise near Bakersfield, California October 14, 2014. The U.S. Senate Energy Committee on Thursday narrowly passed a bill to lift a 40-year old ban on the export of crude oil, but the measure faces an uphill battle in getting passed by the full Senate. The bill to allow the United States to export oil and boost state revenue-sharing for offshore oil and gas drilling passed along party lines by a vote of 12-10. It was the second significant step in two days for advocates of lifting the ban: Republican House Speaker John Boehner announced his support on Wednesday for repealing the law. But Congressional Democrats remain reluctant to reverse the ban, citing, among other things, a fear it would lead to higher gas prices. Democratic support is seen as crucial to getting President Barack Obama to sign any legislation permitting crude exports. Senate […]

A Chevron gas station sign is seen in Del Mar, California, April 25, 2013. Chevron will report earnings on April 26. The stark reality of a much-feared second dip in crude prices is prompting global oil majors and nimble U.S. shale companies alike to ax spending once again a year after the first price crash started. Just days into the second-quarter earnings season, Chevron Corp ( CVX.N ) and Royal Dutch Shell Plc ( RDSa.L ) said they would slash a combined 8,000 thousand jobs around the world. In North Dakota, Whiting Petroleum Corp ( WLL.N ), the top producer in the No. 2 U.S. oil patch, cut its capital expenditure budget days after optimistically raising it 15 percent on bets the renewed downturn in prices would be a temporary blip. ConocoPhillips ( COP.N ), the largest U.S. independent, trimmed its 2015 budget for the third time on Thursday, […]

Oil storage tanks are seen at sunrise with the Rocky Mountains and the Denver downtown skyline in the background October 14, 2014. Commercial crude stocks across the United States rose by 105 million barrels early this year to peak at 490 million barrels, the highest level in eight decades. Despite some draw downs in recent weeks, which have reduced inventories to 460 million barrels, stocks are still 92 million barrels higher than this time last year. And stocks could rise again at the end of the third quarter when U.S. refineries enter the traditional autumn turn around season. Yet the cost of storing crude has remained relatively modest throughout thanks to a big increase in tank farm and pipeline capacity added in recent years. Working storage capacity at refineries, tank farms and underground storage facilities in the United States has increased by 85 million barrels, almost 19 percent, since […]

Eleven months of surviving with oil below $100 have left Russia hardened enough to endure a monthlong drop to $40 a barrel, a survey of economists showed. Crude at that level will push the economy to a contraction of 5 percent this year and 1 percent in 2016, before it rebounds to 0.8 percent growth in 2017, according to the median of 20 estimates. The central bank said in June the economy will shrink every year through 2017 if oil remains at $40. The ruble’s crisis last year underscored the vulnerability of the world’s biggest energy exporter to slumping oil, which together with gas accounts for about half of budget revenue. The latest forecasts reflect Russia’s move to loosen its reins over the currency and allow consumer demand to absorb the shock of last year’s collapse. “During the first half of 2015, the economy has already adjusted to some […]

Shell’s company logo is pictured at a gas station in Zurich April 8, 2015. Royal Dutch Shell ( RDSa.L ) is to ax 6,500 jobs this year and step up spending cuts to deal with an extended period of lower oil prices which contributed to a 37 percent drop in the oil and gas group’s second-quarter profits. The Anglo-Dutch company also said it was planning more asset disposals as it pushes ahead with its proposed $70 billion acquisition of BG Group ( BG.L ), bringing total asset sales between 2014 and 2018 to $50 billion. "We have to be resilient in a world where oil prices remain low for some time, whilst keeping an eye on recovery," Chief Executive Officer Ben van Beurden said. Shell said it anticipated 6,500 staff and direct contractor reductions in 2015 from a total of nearly 100,000 employees. And the group said it would […]

European motorists eyeing the bear market in crude oil are going to be disappointed at the pump. Brent, the benchmark crude oil, slumped 21 percent since May 6, meeting the common definition of a bear market. For the first time in at least a decade, the milestone has yet to be accompanied by a slide in retail gasoline. In fact, prices rose slightly over the same period, European Commission data show. Energy analysts are pinning the blame on a stronger U.S. economy, saying it’s pulling more cargoes of the fuel than normal across the Atlantic in America’s driving season. European prices normally fall when crude oil has big declines, as this graphic shows. “The lower oil price has created a lot of anger and frustration amongst drivers as they are not seeing those downward moves reciprocated at the pumps,” Luke Bosdet, spokesman for the AA, the U.K.’s biggest motoring […]

‘Roughly 10 feet of sea level rise—well beyond previous estimates—would render coastal cities such as New York, London, and Shanghai uninhabitable.’ NYC image via joiseyshowaa/flickr. Creative Commons 2.0. license. If a new scientific paper is proven accurate, the international target of limiting global temperatures to a 2°C rise this century will not be nearly enough to prevent catastrophic melting of ice sheets that would raise sea levels much higher and much faster than previously thought possible. Parts of [our coastal cities] would still be sticking above the water, but you couldn’t live there." —Dr. James Hansen According to the new study—which has not yet been peer-reviewed, but was written by former NASA scientist James Hansen and 16 other prominent climate researchers—current predictions about the catastrophic impacts of global warming, the melting of vast ice sheets, and sea level rise do not take into account the feedback loop implications of […]

A customer prepares to fill up his tank in a gasoline station in Nice December 5, 2014. Oil prices extended gains in Asian trade on Thursday, after a larger than expected draw in U.S. crude and gasoline stocks strengthened the outlook for oil demand. But gains were capped by a stronger dollar and despite the drop in oil stocks some commentators warn of a global supply glut, with OPEC members producing 3 million barrels per day more than demand in the second quarter. U.S. crude stockpiles fell by 4.2 million barrels in the week to July 24, more than twenty times analysts’ expectations of a decrease of 184,000 barrels, Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed. Gasoline stocks dropped by 363,000 barrels against analysts’ forecasts of a 512,000-barrel gain with U.S. gasoline demand up 6.2 percent from a year ago. The large draw down in stocks could be short-lived, said […]

LONDON—Oil prices rose on Thursday after weekly U.S. crude oil inventories posted a surprise fall offering a glimmer of hope that the oil glut might start to abate. Prices have dropped sharply in July as persistently high U.S. production, coupled with record output from other major suppliers like Saudi Arabia , met worries about slowing demand exacerbated by this month’s massive selloff in Chinese equities . Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.7% to $53.77 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures exchange. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate futures were trading up 0.2% at $48.87 a barrel. Both contracts are still off more than 20% since their peaks earlier in the spring. On Wednesday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that U.S. crude inventories fell by 4.2 million barrels last week defying analysts’ expectations of no change. U.S. oil production also fell, by 145,000 barrels […]

The most important question in the oil market is whether American production is falling as prices drop. Official oil data aren’t giving a straight answer. Investors, traders and executives who rely on federal data from the Energy Information Administration are tripping over conflicting images of U.S. production that have emerged from separate EIA reports in recent months. At stake are billions of dollars of wagers on the direction of oil prices as well as potential long-term investments by energy companies. Oil prices have swooned by more than 50% over the past year, due largely to a boom in production from U.S. shale-oil fields. Many analysts say prices will only stabilize after less-economical production is squeezed out, spurring a sustained decline in output. Weekly oil-output estimates from the EIA started to show falling production in April. Separate EIA reports on shale-oil drilling have forecast production declines for months. But the […]

Saboteurs attacked on July 29 a pipeline transporting crude oil between the Iraqi city of Kirkuk and the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, halting the flow of oil, Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said, Anadolu Agency and Reuters reported. The attack, which took place near the Iraqi border in Turkey’s Sirnak province, comes a day after militants attacked a natural gas pipeline in Agri province, near the Iranian border. The Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq relies on part of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline for its own exports. The pipeline has been carrying around 300,000 barrels of oil per day, down from its maximum operational capacity of 400,000 barrels daily, because of other recent attacks, according to Iraqi government figures. As it commits to operations in Syria and Iraq, Ankara is stepping up its fight against the Kurds — a move that could have unintended consequences south of the border . […]

Turkish gendarme forces patrol the road leading to the jetty at the Ceyhan crude oil terminal on July 13, 2006. (FATIH SARIBAS/Reuters) The export pipeline in Turkey carrying crude from Iraq is expected to restart by Thursday after two acts of sabotage this week, including an incident Wednesday that Turkish officials are calling a bomb attack.Officials from Iraq’s North Oil Company (NOC) and the autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), as well as industry officials close to the operations of the Iraq-Turkey Pipeline (ITP), said smuggling operations in Urfa, roughly 370 kilometers from the Iraqi border, took the line d… This content is for registered users. Please login to continue. If you are not a registered user, you may purchase a subscription or sign up for a free trial .

Turkish struggles with militant campaigns spills over into energy sector, with two pipelines bombed in two days. File Photo by Ebrahem Khadir/ UPI ANKARA, Turkey, July 29 (UPI) — For the second consecutive day, pipelines running through southern Turkey have become the target of militant campaigns drawing attention from NATO. Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said Wednesday a section of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline, running from northern Iraq to Turkish ports, was bombed in southern Sirnak province. "Just after the explosion we’ve closed the oil valves to stop extra oil flow," he was quoted as saying by the state-run Anadolu News Agency. "We have taken measures and the attack won’t have an effect on oil supply and demand." The pipeline from northern Iraq has a maximum capacity of around 400,000 barrels of oil per day. The bombing comes one day after an attack on a natural gas pipeline running […]

RIYADH—The world’s top crude-oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, is planning to pull back from record-high levels of production at the end of the summer when domestic energy demand subsides, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The reduction could begin as soon as September and would amount to about 200,000 to 300,000 barrels a day, bringing production to about 10.3 million barrels a day, the people said. Saudi Arabia told the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries that it produced 10.56 million barrels a day in June, a record high. “It is purely based on the [domestic] demand situation,” one of the people said, adding that “production is likely to hover around” 10 million barrels until the end of the year. Saudi Arabia—one of a handful of countries that generates electricity by burning crude oil—generally reduces production in the fall, when demand for the heavily subsidized energy to power […]

Libya has become a major headache for European oil companies as a four-year conflict forced BP to join Total in writing off millions of dollars in investments in the North African country. BP on Tuesday said it had taken an impairment of almost $600 million in the second quarter as fighting forced it to suspend an oil exploration campaign. The unexpected charge was the main reason BP’s earnings fell short of analysts’ estimates. “There is significant uncertainty on when drilling operations might be able to proceed,” London-based BP said in a statement. The charge comes three months after Total became the first European oil major to take an impairment in Libya, writing off $755 million from onshore assets. That’s an ominous sign for firms including Eni SpA and Repsol SA, which have yet to mark down the value of their assets in the country. The Libyan oil industry has […]

Mexico started its annual program to lock in oil sales for the coming year as a shield against a further drop in prices, three people with direct knowledge said. Morgan Stanley, Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. are among the banks involved, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the process is private. Mexico’s hedging program is probably the largest undertaken by a national government, the chief economist for the country’s Finance Ministry said in 2012. The Latin American country has started buying the puts, which gives it the right to sell oil at a predetermined price, earlier than the usual period of late August to late September, the people said. They declined to provide further details, including the price level. Mexico’s hedging program has often roiled energy markets since its introduction in 1990-91. Spokesmen for Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, JPMorgan and […]

Ughelli — The two suspects arrested by security agents in connection with the explosion that rocked an oil pipeline belonging to the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company, NPDC at Ighwrenene community, Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State, have stated that they blew up the pipeline in a bid to coax NPDC into awarding them a pipeline surveillance contract. The suspects identified as Dennis Oneya aka ‘General Touch’ and Emmanuel Joseph aka Ajegunle, both of Uduere and Afiesere communities respectively, told newsmen at the 222 Battalion headquarters, Agbarha-Otor that they embarked on the mission having being promised job slots by their sponsors when awarded the contract. Speaking on their modus operandi, while Dennis Oneya admitted digging the spot on the pipeline to be bombed in company of others, Emmanuel Joseph described himself as an expert in handling of dynamites used in the explosion as well as other similar blasts. […]

Scottish delegation in Beijing in an effort to draw Chinese investors to North Sea oil and gas sector. Photo by James Jones Jr./Shutterstock BEIJING, July 29 (UPI) — A Scottish delegation on an official trip to Beijing said they wanted to draw Chinese investors into the North Sea oil and natural gas sector. Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon led a delegation to Beijing , meeting with senior representatives from three of the largest Chinese oil companies. "I made it clear to management from the firms that Scotland wants to work with them and seize on the vast opportunities that remain in the North Sea," she said in a statement. "Scotland is open for business and investment and partnership working with firm from countries like China will further cement our industry reputation for international leadership." Data published last month by the Scottish government said the North Sea remains the largest […]

Malta-flagged Iranian crude oil supertanker ”Delvar” is seen anchored off Singapore March 1, 2012. Any attempt by Iran to sell to China millions of barrels of ultra light crude built up in tankers over the last 2-1/2 years of sanctions is likely to be thwarted by poor refining margins and an outage at a major importer of the oil. Traders and company officials say Iran has little choice but to target China to buy the crude known as condensate because the world’s No.2 oil consumer in the past has been quickest to raise imports when conditions were in its favor. Other Asian buyers in Japan and South Korea said their governments have yet to approve taking more crude from Iran as the nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers still has to be approved by the U.S. Congress and the Islamic republic’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. However, China […]

A trader waits for the opening of Whiting Petroleum’s stock at the post where it is traded on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange March 24, 2015. Whiting Petroleum Corp cut its 2015 budget on Wednesday less than two weeks after raising it, a turnaround that underscores the uncertainty engulfing the energy industry while crude prices sit roughly 50 percent below last year’s levels. The company, North Dakota’s largest oil producer, tends to be seen as a key barometer of the health of the U.S. shale industry. Its spending trepidation is sure to have ripple effects on drilling contractors and other oilfield service providers. Whiting now plans to spend $2.15 billion this year, running eight drilling rigs instead of a previous plan for 11, and mulling small divestments to bolster the company’s balance sheet. Just 12 days ago the company had boosted its budget by 15 percent […]

An aerial view of burnt train cars after a train derailment and explosion in Lac-Megantic, Quebec July 8, 2013, in this picture provided by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada. The Obama administration on Wednesday released a new regulation intended to prevent explosive rail disasters such as the 2013 oil train derailment that killed 47 people and destroyed part of Lac-Megantic, Quebec. The new rule by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) requires two qualified railroad employees to ensure that handbrakes and other safety equipment have been properly set on trains left unattended while carrying dangerous materials such as crude oil or ethanol. A series of oil train accidents in recent years led the United States and Canada in May to announce sweeping new safety regulations that require more secure tank cars and advanced braking technology to prevent moving trains from derailing and spilling their contents. The new rule is […]

Suncor Energy Inc., Canada’s largest oil producer, cut its spending plan for 2015 for a second time and eliminated some non-essential projects as part of cost-reduction efforts. The company now plans to spend between C$5.8 billion ($4.5 billion) and C$6.4 billion from an earlier range of C$6.2 billion and C$6.8 billion, Calgary-based Suncor said Wednesday Canadian time in a statement on Marketwired. Suncor has already cut about 1,000 jobs and previously lowered its 2015 capital budget by C$1 billion while delaying projects to weather collapsing prices. Still, it’s pressing ahead with the C$13 billion Fort Hills oil-sands mine. The move to cut spending comes after the price of West Texas Intermediate moved back into a bear market, dropping below $50 a barrel earlier this month for the first time in about a quarter. The U.S. benchmark, averaged about $58 in the second quarter compared with about $103 in the […]

Giant oil companies are weathering the oil slump better than the average shale driller, but even their famous stability is at times being surpassed by much smaller companies that own some of the choicest U.S. oil-and-gas fields. Take Cimarex Energy Co. XEC 3.33 % , which drills in Texas and Oklahoma. The oil producer’s stock price has fared better than that of Chevron Corp. CVX 0.92 % , the second largest American oil company by revenue, since crude-oil prices started crashing last June. Shares of Diamondback Energy Inc., FANG 4.09 % an eight-year-old oil producer with a $4.3 billion market value, have held up almost as well as Exxon Mobil Corp. XOM 0.80 % ’s over that stretch. And as of this week, Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. COG -1.49 % , a Houston-based shale-gas specialist, had bested all the big oil companies in stock-market performance since last summer […]

Sign image via shutterstock. Reproduced at Resilience.org with permission> The fracking of oil and gas less than a mile from aquifers or the Earth’s surface now takes place across North America with few restrictions, posing increased risk for drinking water supplies, says a new Stanford study . The study examined the frequency of so-called shallow fracking, described by the researchers as occurring less than a mile underground. Shallow fracking poses a greater risk to drinking water than fracking that occurs much deeper under the Earth’s surface. Out of 44,000 wells fracked between 2010 and 2013 in the United States, researchers found that 6,900 (16 per cent) were fractured less than a mile from the surface and another 2,600 wells (six per cent) were fractured above 3,000 feet, or 900 metres. "What surprised me is how often shallow fracturing occurs with large volumes of chemicals and water," said lead researcher […]